


Henry Turns 11

by DocDimebag



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Gen, This is just crack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-16
Updated: 2013-04-16
Packaged: 2017-12-08 17:21:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/763998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DocDimebag/pseuds/DocDimebag
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Henry turns 11 and he's never been on a boat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Henry Turns 11

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rionarch](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rionarch/gifts).



> This is a gift to my dear friend Bobbles. Forgive the shitty quality.

If there was one person to blame for their current predicament, all parties involved would blame Henry. But if it really came down to it, not one of the afore mentioned parties would dare blame Henry. One does not simply blame a child who lives in a Fairy Tale. Literally. 

It was Henry's birthday. His 11th. He'd been seen on the dock admiring Hook's ship for a number of weeks, the masts seeming to scrape the sky and hull dark and worn, covered in barnacles and sea green. The trip had been his idea, a way to see the world without having to leave Storybrooke, but it had taken the coordination of 5 grown men to actually execute the request. 

The chain had gone a little something like this: Henry had told Charming how much he liked Hook's ship, how he'd never been on a ship before. Charming had told Rumple, who in turn wanted to make his own son Baelfire happy, so how best to do that then spoil his child and play the dutiful Great Grandfather role. Baelfire had jumped at the chance to spend more time with Henry, though with his father he wasn't so excited. Then had come Leroy, insisting, after an overheard conversation at the diner, that they had to teach Henry how to fish is he was ever going to grow up a man. Lastly had come Hook, but only because the ship was his and someone had to sail it. 

There had been bribes and deals and more backstabbing than was necessary for an eleven year old's birthday. But in the end, after a morning breakfast of pancakes covered in strawberries and whipped cream at the diner, Henry was on the ship he admired so much, surrounded by four people who wished him the best, and one who just didn't give a shit. 

It was a warm and sunny day, a light breeze and ripe for a short jaunt off shore to fish the ocean. Henry was thrilled, arms wrapped around the railing at the bow of the boat, staring off into the distance, relishing the sea. Hook was at the wheel, scowling. Leroy was checking the ice chest full of bait he'd put together. Charming stood behind Hook, muttering threats about what would happen if the day didn't go as planned. Leaning against a mast stood Baelfire, brooding with his arms crossed as his father tried to spin new excuses for his past actions. 

The only person excited to be on this boat was Henry.

And possibly Leroy. 

It was only a few hours into the trip when all went to shit. 

Rumple found himself leaning over the rail, heaving up a breakfast he didn't eat. Charming was there beside him, a soothing hand on his back muttering encouraging manly nothings while Baelfire stood by and laughed. Hook muttered under his breath at the wheel. Leroy muttered sweet nothings to his box of bait. Henry remained latched to the railing, smile nearly splitting his face in half. 

They anchored a ways off, the shoreline just a hazy line in the distant horizon. Henry sat with his legs dangling off of the side of the ship, pole held firmly in his small hands, the line sunk deep below the waters below. Behind him in a pair of matching lawn chairs sat Rumple and Charming, an ice chest of Miller Lite open between them. Charming was on his second, Rumple was on his fifth. The tail end of his fifth. 

“How is it-Charming-that you show up in your daughters life after a lifetime of absence and she accepts you! So openly! But I—I make one mistake—and my own son won't even speak to me!” Rumple took another long pull on his beer can, finishing it, crushing it in his fist and throwing it back across the deck of the ship. Hook grumbled something about the state of his ship. Baelfire sat next to Henry, his back against the railing of the ship. 

“I have enough reason never to talk to you again!” He spat at Rumple, kicking his leg out in a feigned attempt at kicking him out of his lawn chair and onto the hard deck. 

“See!” Rumple went on, almost pleading with Charming, “He hates me!”

“Well, you did give him reason Rumple. You abandoned him, in a sense”

“You shoved your newborn daughter into a tree! Dropping her into God knows where! I hardly see a difference!”

Charming sighed heavily, pinched the bridge of his nose, set his beer on the deck

“I need some air” he said, rising from his lawn chair. 

“Air? Air! We're on a boat, Charming, all you get on this damned thing is air!” screamed Rumple. 

An hour later found Baelfire in both lawn chairs, using the second to rest his feet while he basked in the sun with a beer, shirtsleeves rolled up and shoes discarded. Rumple had assumed his previous station at the side of the boat, releasing his five and a half beers into the great expansive ocean, Charming still standing by, despite the verbal abuse. He was still muttering manly nothings. 

Henry sat with Leroy, the both of them content to watch the sea as they waited for a bite from the depths below. So far they'd gotten nothing but that didn't detract from the amount of pure joy Henry was getting from this outing. 

Hook had retreated below. He still wasn't giving a shit about any of it. 

It was nearing dusk by the time the impressive ship was steered back to port. Emma, Mary Margaret and Regina waited for them, expecting the best but ready for the worst. Mary Margaret had even gone so far as to pack a first aid kit, least there be wounds that needed dressing after a day at sea. 

What greeted them first was a green faced Rumple, sickly and reeking just slightly of vomit. Next was Charming, sunburnt and overly stern for having just spent the day on a boat with his grandson. Baelfire stumbled his way off the ship, shoes laced together and thrown over his shoulder, a beer still in one hand. (This earned him a disgruntled look from both the mothers and the grandmother, appalled at the idea of bringing alcohol to an 11 year old's party). Hook came next, still muttering curses under his breath. 

“I wipe my hand of you people” he said with distaste as he trudged his way down the pier. 

Last was Leroy and Henry, both grinning ear to ear with sun reddened noses and absolutely not a single fish in sight. Learning to fish didn't necessarily mean catching any fish. 

Henry had never had such a great birthday.


End file.
